


Pile of Hoodies

by hotelcortez



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: '00 line centric, Cuties, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Storm - Freeform, but they take care of each other, extreme fluffiness, they get locked in a studio
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-28
Updated: 2019-08-28
Packaged: 2020-10-01 22:09:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,949
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20420897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hotelcortez/pseuds/hotelcortez
Summary: All the young boys had their fears that they often went to the hyungs about, but when a storm locks the '00 line in a studio alone for the night, they finally learn what it's like to be vulnerable in front of each other.And they soon realise that no one understands them better than their same age friends.





	Pile of Hoodies

**Author's Note:**

> *EDIT: considering the news that has come out about woojin, i will not be supporting or writing him anymore. as far as i can tell i have managed to edit him completely out this story. if i have missed anything, please let me know*
> 
> Hello!! Welcome to my newest little story <3
> 
> I decided to focus on the '00 line this time because I love them and they're all beautiful and I wanted to write them being all snuggly together uwu
> 
> TW: discussion of fears - fear of being alone, fear of storms and loud noises, fear of being left out/not fitting in, fear of not understanding a language. There's nothing graphic, but please still stay safe <3
> 
> Enjoy! xx

_Sail across the world, this is our time_

_Stray Kids, nine or none, we're gonna cross the finish line_

\- Mixtape #4

. . .

When they’d all filtered into the studio at midday, the weather had been fine.

Sure, it had been a little rainy and the sky was painted a miserable grey, but it hadn’t been nearly as bad as the storm that was descending on them now.

The four boys had barely even noticed at first, they’d been so busy all afternoon. The speaker was still playing songs they were all trying to nail choreography to, and Jisung’s many notebooks were scattered in one corner of the room as he routinely filled them with lyrics, and Seungmin and Felix had basically taken over an entire section of the floor with the amount of English and Korean books they’d been using to help each other study.

By the time the clock struck midnight and Hyunjin went to open a window, hoping to bring some coolness to all their heated, sweaty bodies after a straight hour of dancing, it was pouring with rain.

“Oh, wow,” Hyunjin muttered as he stuck his head out the window, enjoying the cold drops of rain on his face as he leaned out to spy storm clouds gradually battling their way towards the studio, “It is raining hard out here.”

“Then don’t stick your head out in it, genius,” Seungmin rolled his eyes, “Does this mean we have to leave now? I don’t really want to be walking outside when the thunder starts.”

“But look at the rain,” Hyunjin pouted as he pulled his head back in, black hair drenched and dripping onto his t-shirt, “It’s so heavy right now. Surely we should wait for it to slow down a little before we go back.”

“Hyunjin, it’s a storm,” Felix grinned as he shook his head, “This is only the beginning of it. That rain isn’t going to ‘slow down’ for a long time.”

“But I don’t want to walk home in that,” Hyunjin deepened his pout, “I’m already soaking wet, see!”

Jisung should have known that the words meant Hyunjin was about to do something stupid, but he was unfortunately not able to scramble out the way in time as Hyunjin started violently shaking his head, splattering water all over Jisung and anything else within a 5-foot radius.

“Yah! Hyunjin!” Jisung yelled, standing up and sprinting to hide behind Felix who was watching the scene with a little too much amusement, “Aish, we get it! You don’t want to walk in the rain.”

“To be fair,” Felix added, voice laced with laughter as Hyunjin finally stopped flailing, “I don’t think any of us want to walk home in the rain after that display.”

“Let me call the manager,” Seungmin said, pulling out his phone, “I’ll see if they can send us a car.”

“Alright,” Felix responded, going over to the other end of the room to retrieve his towel, “Come here, Hyunjinnie.”

Hyunjin quickly obeyed as Felix settled himself on the ground with his legs crossed and the towel draped unfolded across his lap, ready for Hyunjin to plonk himself down.

“I don’t want you drying with hair with your sweaty towel,” Hyunjin eyed the towel warily as he stopped a couple of feet from Felix.

“I haven’t used it yet,” he smiled up at Hyunjin, “I’ve just been drinking water and stuff, it’s not hot enough in here to be extremely sweaty.”

“Oh,” Hyunjin’s face brightened, “Perfect.”

The entire room seemed to lighten with him as Hyunjin made quick work of throwing himself down on his back, his head landing in Felix’s lap with a giggle as Felix grabbed the edges of the towel and immediately started rubbing them through Hyunjin’s damp locks. A content sigh left Hyunjin’s lips at the action, Jisung smiling as he came over and settled himself next to them, pulling Hyunjin’s legs into his own lap and using his thumbs to work at some of the knots in the dancer’s thighs. 

The three fell into a comfortable silence, listening to Seungmin talking quietly on the phone at the other end of the room. It was nice to have just the four of them hanging out again; it had been so long since they’d had a chance to just unwind and catch up on all the things that had been clogging their minds. Throughout the day, they’d been able to re-learn choreography, go back to studies and finally relax around each other. There was just something so peaceful about organising their headspaces with the people who probably understood them better than anyone else in the world. There were no formalities or anything between them, just four same-age friends who enjoyed each other’s company.

But that peace was soon interrupted by a clap of thunder roaring outside, startling them all as Hyunjin’s head flew up from Felix’s lap and Seungmin turned worried eyes towards the window.

“Aigoo,” Jisung muttered quietly to himself, turning back to Felix and Hyunjin, “We really should have left when we had the chance.”

“Yeah, I’m starting to think you’re right,” Felix said grimly, “Let’s just hope for a driver, yeah?”

Hyunjin and Jisung were just starting to nod when Seungmin spoke up, his eyes concerned and his mouth pulled down slightly at the corners. The phone had been removed from his ear and was now being fiddled with in front of his stomach, both of his hands working to turn and flip the object as if it could take the stress Seungmin seemed to be feeling.

“I’m sorry, but there’s not going to be a driver,” Seungmin said solemnly, diverting his gaze to the floor as Hyunjin sat up.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“Well,” Seungmin tilted his head, “They don’t want to risk sending a driver out when the storm is this bad, so there’s no one who can pick us up.”

“But,” Jisung jumped again when another clap of thunder smashed against the window, accompanied by a terrifying flash that illuminated every inch of the room, “They’re not leaving us here, right? They can’t… they can’t leave us alone during a storm.”

Felix’s head whipped round at the slight shake in Jisung’s voice, concern immediately shooting through his veins. It was no secret that Jisung was scared easily and jumped at loud noises, so it made sense that Jisung probably wasn’t a very big fan of storms. Felix felt a slight pang of sympathy in his chest, manoeuvring so he could place his hand on top of where Jisung’s was resting on the floor, squeezing gently on his fingers.

“That’s the problem,” Seungmin looked down for a second before sighing loudly and walking over to them, falling none-too-gracefully into a sitting position, “Apparently, this building was damaged badly by storms a few years ago. They added this kind-of lockdown protocol that means whenever there’s a storm, all the windows and doors get sealed and the entire building gets closed up to avoid any part of the building or people inside getting damaged again.”

“Wait!” Jisung’s voice had gone up at least an octave in pitch, “So, we’re stuck here?”

“No, we can’t be,” Hyunjin quickly shook his head, “Seungmin, you said security closes the building, right? They have to evacuate everyone first, they should be here for us any minute.”

“I-I’m afraid not,” Seungmin said regretfully, tearing his eyes away from the hopeful gazes of Hyunjin and Jisung, “When security evacuated the building, it was just before midnight and they assumed most people would be gone. They made a quick announcement and did a quick sweep and they somehow missed us. Apparently, no one informed them we were here.”

“Are you… are you trying to say that we’re stuck here?” Jisung seemed almost afraid to ask, his own fingers now gripping painfully to Felix’s.

“I’m sorry,” Seungmin said, “The manager almost had a fit when I told them we were still here. They don’t think there’s anything they can do, the building’s locked and security’s gone. Luckily, the storm isn’t bad enough for the building to really get damaged so we should be safe. But we’re still stuck here until morning.”

“Damn,” Felix whispered to himself, tilting his head as he processed the situation. Truthfully, it didn’t really faze Felix all that much. He wasn’t afraid of storms and he, like the rest of the group, had pulled his fair share of all-nighters so he wasn’t worried about the lack of sleep. That didn’t mean he was looking forward to a night of thunder and hard floors though, especially since he could already tell Jisung was scared and this was exactly the kind of situation that would make Seungmin antsy, which would in-turn make Hyunjin and Felix anxious too since they were both very easily influenced by the emotions around them.

That was the problem with the ’00 line, they fed off and built on each other’s emotions. So, when one of them was stressed, chances were the others would all go down as well. And they all showed stress in different ways, so it was very possible to have four kinds of freak-out going on at the same time. Seungmin would get tense and itchy and start working too fast and too hard, Jisung would get scared and shaky and unbelievably tired, Hyunjin would get overly-emotional at the tiniest of things, and Felix would just shut down. It wasn’t the most ideal of situations, but that was usually where the hyungs came in.

The hyungs had very quickly learnt how to handle the ’00 line. All their calm demeanour perfectly complimented Seungmin’s fast tension, Minho’s ability to quietly soothe was naturally able to comfort Jisung, Changbin’s love for affection was always there for Hyunjin, and Chan’s general understanding of all things Felix was usually enough to pull the younger out of his head. They all knew when to keep the group apart and when to let them lean on each other (like the times Hyunjin wanted Seungmin to hold his hand when he cried) and it was a perfect system for a perfect, happy group.

And then, of course, there was Jeongin, whose cheerful smile and kind words were usually enough to brighten anyone’s day.

But, unfortunately for them, there was no Jeongin and there were no hyungs in the studio at that moment and they were locked in a building in the middle of the night. Jisung was already showing signs of fear and Seungmin was clearly uncomfortable, Hyunjin looking between them like he wasn’t quite sure what to do. Felix could already feel his pulse creeping up, but he forced himself to take a deep breath and think, knowing they needed to remain calm.

“Okay,” Felix pulled his and Jisung’s hands onto his lap and put on a smile as everyone turned to look at him, “That’s fine, all we’re doing is spending a little more time at the studio than usual, that’s nothing out of the ordinary.”

“Yeah, but with all the doors locked, and a massive storm raging outside,” Hyunjin pointed out, bottom lip clasped between his teeth.

“Hey,” Seungmin was quick to reach forward and tug his thumb over the lips, not wanting Hyunjin to hurt himself, “Felix is right. It’s just the studio, we’ll be fine.”

“Exactly,” Felix said, “Now someone should call Chan-hyung, make sure he knows what’s going on. He’s going to freak out, but there’s not exactly much we can do about that. I just don’t want him to worry when no one comes home.”

“I’ll do it,” Seungmin volunteered, just like Felix knew he would; Seungmin’s antsy emotions definitely got better when he was given tasks that helped him regain control over the situation, “Changbin-hyung should be back at the dorm by now anyway, he’ll help with Chan-hyung.”

“Thanks, Seungminnie,” Hyunjin looked up at Seungmin with a small smile, one that reached his eyes when Seungmin ruffled his hair before scurrying off to make the phone-call.

They all watched as Seungmin pulled out his phone, talking quietly into the speaker for a few minutes before Seungmin hurried to reassure an audibly shouting Chan that they were all okay. Even Jisung started laughing when they heard Seungmin saying that _yes, they would try to get some sleep _and _no, Chan did not need to show up with a hammer and an umbrella._

“Typical, hyung,” Hyunjin said, shaking his head, “He worries for us too much.”

“To be fair, we’ve somehow managed to get ourselves locked in the studio,” Felix said, “He’s probably right to worry about us. I’m surprised we haven’t given him a heart attack yet.”

“But we can take care of ourselves,” Hyunjin whined, “We’ll have to show him that by surviving tonight.”

“And how exactly do you think we’re surviving tonight?” Jisung asked quietly, jumping again at another roar of thunder from outside.

Both Hyunjin and Felix frowned, clearly upset by Jisung’s blatant display of fear. It was clear that the storm wasn’t going to go away anytime soon and was most likely going to get worse, and neither Hyunjin nor Felix wanted Jisung to keep feeling the way he was, so they needed to come up with something to keep him calm.

“I know how we’re going to survive tonight,” Felix suddenly said, smiling at the apprehensive looks from Hyunjin and Jisung, “We’re going to make a bed.”

Hyunjin’s eyebrows shot up, Jisung’s fear moulding slightly into confusion as he began to play with Felix’s fingers, “What?”

“Well, we’re going to have to sleep somewhere,” Felix started bouncing like a little kid, bounding over to where all their hoodies and towels were laying and dragging them over, “May as well make it as comfortable as possible.”

Jisung’s face lit up, “Oh yeah!”

Since they’d all moved into a dorm together, it had become painfully obvious that Jisung liked to be cosy. When he was far away from cameras, he was always wearing oversized hoodies and padding around in fluffy socks and wrapping himself in large blankets. It was cute, to say the least, and Felix knew that when Jisung put his mind to something, especially something he enjoyed, he became very focused. So, it was no surprise when all the fear seemed to melt away from the boy and he immediately began arranging all the soft materials into a pile they could all lie on.

No one said anything about the infinite sofas scattered around the building that would be much more comfortable to sleep on. Somehow, it just felt right that they’d all be snuggled up together in a familiar room, especially when it would be in a bed Jisung had made for them.

“Good idea, Lixie!” Hyunjin’s eyes pulled up into adorable crescents as he leapt towards Jisung, instantly pulling off his own cardigan to help.

“Thanks,” Felix grinned, looking at Seungmin who was watching them tenderly as he finished his phone call with Chan, “Come on, Seungminnie. There’s probably some cushions on the sofas outside the offices, let’s go get them!”

With that, Felix skipped over to Seungmin and grabbed his hand, Seungmin letting himself be tugged out the room as they giggled together down the empty hallway, happy to hear the easy-going chat of Hyunjin and Jisung continuing behind them.

It wasn’t long before they were bounding back into the room with arms weighed down by cushions. They shared a look, mischievous glints sparkling at each other before they were both running over to the bed Hyunjin and Jisung had made and throwing themselves on top of it. Their fall was broken by the pillows in their arms and they both burst out laughing at Jisung’s shocked expression.

“Yah!” Jisung grabbed one of the pillows and whacked Felix over the head with it, Hyunjin screeching with laughter, “We worked hard on that bed!”

“Sorry Sungie,” Felix panted through a messy fringe, eyes watering slightly from the hit, “Couldn’t resist.”

Jisung could only pout in response, Felix watching him for a couple of seconds before tackling him to the cushions, both of them dissolving into giggles as Hyunjin and Seungmin looked on with warm smiles.

A few moments passed as Jisung let himself be held in Felix’s arms, enjoying the warmth and comfort and the small reminder that it really was going to be okay.

Seungmin soon resumed working on the bed and Jisung immediately sat up to help, his fingers running soothingly over a cushion before the entire room lit up in another flash of lightning and thunder boomed once more, crackling distortedly through the air as Hyunjin and Jisung flinched _hard_.

They both drew in fast breaths, their heartrates malfunctioning a little as the air outside slowly settled back into the pouring rain, waiting sinisterly for the next crack of lightning.

Seungmin frowned as he looked at them, noticing the tension that had immediately sucked itself right back into Jisung and, by default, Hyunjin. He met Felix’s worried eyes, knowing that they could make as many beds as they wanted, but it still wouldn’t stop them all from hearing the chaos going on outside. Their brows furrowed, there had to be something they could do…

Suddenly, Seungmin’s eyes perked up, a grin spreading over his soft face, “Hyunjinnie! Lixie!”

Hyunjin and Felix both whipped round to face him, Seungmin throwing a wink before nodding towards the speaker.

“Dance for us,” Seungmin said cheerily, Hyunjin knotting his eyebrows in confusion before Felix made a noise of understanding and ran to plug his phone in. He immediately pressed play on the music and turned the volume all the way up, loud enough to drown out any noises from outside.

They’d normally be scolded for playing music this loud, but it didn’t matter when there was no one else in the building. So, Hyunjin made let out a loud ‘ooooh!’ noise and scampered to his feet, laughing when he realised Felix was playing Twice.

Jisung smiled as he watched them, unable to hold back his giggles when they burst into the chorus for ‘What is Love?’, matching twinkles on both their faces.

They managed to get through about five Twice songs, all of them doing a better job of distracting Jisung and cheering up everyone in the room as Hyunjin and Felix danced from corner-to-corner.

Soon enough, the makeshift bed was finished and Jisung and Seungmin curled up against one another, Seungmin’s head resting gently on Jisung’s chest and their hands firmly clasped together as they watched Hyunjin and Felix. The Twice songs had ended and now the two dancers were attempting GOT7 songs, executing the moves perfectly but also having a competition to see which one of them could poke the other the most times during a song

It was a comical game, and Jisung found himself laughing more than once at their surprised faces, Seungmin giggling quietly underneath him.

The fear amongst them was slowly starting to seep away, all worries and stresses fading into the background, replaced by the comfort and warmth and light that came with being in each other’s company.

Until…

…suddenly.

With a great clash of light and a colossal growl of thunder, the entire room was plunged into darkness, the speaker clicking off and all shreds of light flooding from the room.

“What?!” Hyunjin fell to the floor, frantically feeling around him for something he could grab onto, something he could reach, something to show him that he was still here and he was safe and he was okay and he wasn’t in the darkness anymore and _oh my god where was everyone where did they go why couldn’t he see oh my god…_

“It’s just the power!” Felix’s shout sounded melodic to Hyunjin’s ears, a deep breath gargling its way into his throat as he tried to force down the bubbling emotion inside of him, “The power’s just gone out, it must have been the storm. Is everyone okay?”

“We’re fine,” Seungmin’s voice came from the other end of the room, sounding a little strained but otherwise okay, “Just give us a minute.”

Felix nodded before he realised that no one could see him, “Okay,” his voice got softer, “Hyunjinnie?”

“F-Felix?” Hyunjin stuttered as he spoke, trying to swallow around the lump in his throat.

“I’m here, Hyunjin,” Felix kept his voice loud but somehow comforting as sounds of shuffling got closer to Hyunjin, “Can you speak again for me? I’m going to find my way over to you.”

“Felix,” Hyunjin was able to keep his voice steady this time, feeling his heart accelerate as Felix’s footsteps got nearer to him, “I’m here, on the floor.”

“Okay,” Felix was a lot closer now, only a couple of seconds of silence blanketing them before Hyunjin squeaked at the feeling of an outstretched hand bumping into his face.

“Sorry,” Hyunjin could hear the smile in Felix’s voice, “Didn’t see you there.”

“It’s okay,” Hyunjin said timidly as he carefully took the hand and guided it to his own shoulder, breathing a sigh of relief when Felix used the gesture as a guide to wrap his arms around Hyunjin.

“It’s alright, Jinnie,” Felix whispered into Hyunjin’s ear, “You’re not alone, okay? I’m right here.”

The words sent a spark of warmth blooming through Hyunjin’s chest, allowing him to relax fully into the arms protecting him. He only flinched a little when there were more cracks of thunder from outside, the arms tightening around his shoulders and feeling around to guide Hyunjin’s face into a strong chest.

“You’re okay, Sungie,” Seungmin’s voice trilled quietly from the other end of the room, carrying over the timid whimpers coming from Jisung, “It’s just a little thunder, yeah?”

“Everything alright over there?” Felix’s voice was loud and firm, his chest rumbling against Hyunjin’s cheek as he spoke, “Shall we try and find our way over?”

“Yeah… just…” Seungmin sounded more strained this time, like he was reaching for something, “Almost there.”

Hyunjin was briefly left to wonder what that meant before he winced slightly at a small light flooding the room. It bounced around for a couple of seconds, Seungmin evidently getting his bearings before it landed directly on Felix and Hyunjin, illuminating them in a small glow.

“I knew I’d left my phone nearby,” Seungmin was grinning triumphantly, sat up with Jisung curled around him, face buried in Seungmin’s stomach. Hyunjin couldn’t hold back a small smile at the sight, glad he now had all three boys in his vision.

“Come on, Hyunjinnie,” Felix gently nudged Hyunjin, cradling him in his arms as he helped him to his feet and walked him over to Jisung and Seungmin.

Jisung heard them coming and poked his head out from Seungmin’s stomach to peek at them, making a grabby hand towards Hyunjin as they got closer. A small giggle filled the air as Hyunjin took the hand and flopped down next to the duo, Seungmin’s free hand immediately finding its way into Hyunjin’s hair.

“There you go,” Felix looked down at them before swallowing and meeting his eyes with Seungmin, “I’m just going to get mine and Hyunjin’s phone from next to the speaker, could you keep the light pointed to that area of the room?”

“Of course, Lix,” Seungmin replied softly, adjusting the light and giving Felix an encouraging smile, easily recognising the flickers of fear Felix was trying to keep from his own eyes.

“Thanks,” Felix said as he quickly turned, taking a deep breath as he crossed the room and crouched by the speaker, making fast work of snatching up the phones before going back to the others.

Seungmin was quick to pull him into his side, placing his phone face-down on the floor to keep the torch-light glowing up at them.

“We can use these phones as torches once yours dies,” Felix said softly, letting his head fall onto Seungmin’s shoulder as Jisung shifted to curl into the both of them, “Neither of them have much charge, but it’s better than nothing.”

“Yeah, mine’s not got much and neither has Jisung’s, but it’s still alive for now,” Seungmin said, sighing as he realised they might not have enough power to last the night. They’d been in the studio since the afternoon, using phones to aid with studying, play music and relieve boredom during breaks, so they’d expected not to have a lot of charge left at the end of the day. But they hadn’t expected to get caught in a power cut either, so there wasn’t anything they could do to change that now.

“It’s okay,” Hyunjin whispered from where his face was pressed into Seungmin’s leg, “We’re with each other now, it won’t matter if we don’t have a torch.”

Felix felt his face pull into a smile at the words, whilst Seungmin’s eyebrows knotted slightly in confusion.

“I thought you didn’t like the idea of being trapped in the dark, Hyunjin,” Seungmin said gently, “When the power went out, I know Jisung was scared because of the thunder. I thought you were scared too because of the dark.”

“No,” Hyunjin removed his face from Seungmin’s leg, instead choosing to rest his cheek against it as he swallowed heavily, words getting caught in his throat, “I was scared because I… I couldn’t see any of you.”

A small breath of surprise filled the air as Hyunjin spoke, all of them reeling slightly from the unexpected confession. Jisung turned so he was facing Hyunjin, watching as his nervous face was illuminated by the dwindling phonelight.

“What do you mean, Hyunjin?” Jisung asked softly, squeezing the slender hand that was still linked with his own.

“I-,” Hyunjin looked down, taking a deep breath, “I have this strong fear of being alone. When all the lights went out and I had no way of seeing or feeling you, I suddenly felt like there was no one else here, like I was alone… in the dark… with no one to help me.”

“Oh Hyunjinnie,” Seungmin’s voice carried softly, like his angelic vocals that had gotten them all through many hard days, “None of us ever left, we’re all still here for you.”

“I know,” Hyunjin nodded against him, “It’s just sometimes I worry. I worry that you’ll all leave one day, that we’ll all go our separate ways and I won’t have you guys as friends anymore and I’ll… I’ll be all alone. I know it’s stupid to think that way, but that one second alone in the dark, it brought it all back. I thought you were all gone.”

Jisung felt his eyes prickle, his heart stuttering at the words. He didn’t know if he was more saddened or surprised by what Hyunjin had said, saddened that Hyunjin felt this way, and surprised that he’d been able to keep it hidden from them.

“Hyunjin,” Felix’s low voice was serious, one of his small hands reaching over Seungmin to rest on Hyunjin’s shoulder, “Why did you never tell any of us about this?”

“Because it’s stupid,” Hyunjin snorted quietly, “It’s a completely irrational fear that refuses to go away. I didn’t think you’d understand.”

“Hwang Hyunjin. It is not, in any sense of the word, stupid,” Seungmin leaned down so his face was ghosting just over the side of Hyunjin’s, “It doesn’t matter how you feel, we will always try our best to understand. That’s because we love you, Hyunjin, and we’re not going anywhere.”

“Seungmin’s right,” Jisung added, his thumb rubbing circles on the back of Hyunjin’s hand, “It doesn’t matter what happens to our career or whether or not we stay as a band, we’ll still always be Stray Kids. We’ll still always be friends.”

“And we will always, always look out for you, Hyunjin,” Felix said, “You’ll never be alone.”

Hyunjin tried to stop himself from tearing up at the sincerity in all their voices, he really did, but he was already too far gone. He left out a soft sob into Seungmin’s trousers, salty tears wetting the fabric.

“Thank you,” he cried, nose sniffling adorably as he looked up at them all, “Thank you so much.”

“Oh Hyunjin,” Seungmin giggled lightly, reaching out a smooth finger to brush away the tears, “You don’t have to thank us.”

“No, you don’t,” Felix said, moving his hand from Hyunjin’s shoulder to ruffle his hair, “We’re always here to make you feel better? Are you feeling okay now?”

“Yeah I am,” Hyunjin nodded sincerely, “Just… just don’t let go of me when it goes dark again.”

“We’re never letting go of you,” Seungmin squeezed Hyunjin as he spoke, smiling delightedly at the faint blush on his cheeks that was highlighted perfectly by the light of the phone.

“Thank you,” Hyunjin said softly, “Thank you for understanding.”

“There’s no way we wouldn’t understand,” Jisung smiled, “We all have irrational fears. For example, I can’t control the fact that I am absolutely terrified of this storm and all the loud noises it’s making.”

As if on cue, a roaring crackle of thunder shook the entire building and the smile promptly dropped off Jisung’s face, replaced by a look of terror as he flinched harshly.

“Oh, Sungie,” Hyunjin sighed as he watched him, the tears once again gathering in his eyes, “Like you said to me, it’s okay to be scared.”

“Is it though?” Jisung’s voice was timid, his body curling into Felix as he borderline _whimpered, _“Is it really okay for me of all people to be scared of this?”

Seungmin’s face scrunched, a nasty feeling working its way into his chest, “What do you mean, Jisung? Why would it be wrong for just you to be scared?”

An awkward silence coated the air as Jisung froze, his hands coming up to grip to the arm Felix draped over him, “It-it’s nothing.”

“It’s not nothing,” Felix said gently, “You know that none of us mind that you’re scared of the storm, so why do you mind?”

“Because… because I’m supposed to be okay with this stuff!” the words left Jisung in a shaky rush, his back beginning to ripple as his fists desperately gripped Felix’s sleeves, “What kind of rapper am I if I’m not even brave enough to put up with loud noises? Most of the time I can handle it, but what kind of performer does it make me if I can’t step on stage without worrying about the sound effects or the screaming or the fireworks-”

“It makes you a bloody good performer,” Felix cut in before Jisung could continue speaking, “And if you’re brave enough to rap like a boss even through all those loud noises, then that only shows how strong you are. Never once has it impacted your performance, and that’s what makes you so incredible.”

“And the fact that you, like Hyunjin, have kept this hidden for so long shows just how well you’ve shouldered it, even when you haven’t needed to,” Seungmin said, eyes falling in sympathy when Jisung slowly looked up at him, “We all get scared on stage for various reasons, Jisung, you don’t need to be ashamed of that.”

“And you don’t need to be worried about it either,” Hyunjin said, lightly tugging on Jisung’s hand to bring his gaze over to him, “If there’s ever a stage with fireworks, or another storm like this, or anything else you don’t like, then don’t be afraid to come to us. We’ll hold your hand through it.”

“Yeah, we will,” Felix and Seungmin both said at the same time, catching each other’s eyes with a playful grin as Jisung giggled shyly up at them.

“Thanks guys,” he said, fiddling a little with Hyunjin’s fingers as he diverted his gaze, “It actually feels so good to be talking about my fear whilst it happens. Who knew I’d actually feel good whilst locked in a studio at an ungodly hour with a terrifying storm outside and no power?”

“Well, when you put it like that…” Felix drawled, prompting them all to laugh as he drew out his words dramatically, “We’d think you didn’t want to be locked up with us, Sungie.”

“It’s not like I exactly planned it,” Jisung laughed back, still smiling even when the rain got heavier outside, “But I have to admit, there’s something therapeutic about this.”

“Yeah, I know what you mean,” Seungmin inclined his head, “Getting to lie together like this, seeing all your faces brightened by a torch that’s going to go out at any second, talking about our problems. There’s something nice about this, something… beautiful… I guess.”

“Well, don’t hold back on us,” Hyunjin shifted so he was lying on his back, head still cradled by Seungmin’s lap and hand still clasped to Jisung’s, but his eyes now easily able to look up at Seungmin’s face, “What are you worried about, Seungminnie?”

There was a slight flinch as Seungmin recoiled, surprise showing in his widened eyes and slack jaw before he quickly schooled the expression away, shaking his head.

“That’s really not what I meant,” he tried to put on a smile, internally wincing when none of the other boys returned it, “It’s nice that you guys got to talk, but I don’t really mind the storm or the darkness or anything here right now. I don’t need to talk.”

“It doesn’t need to be about the storm, Minnie,” Jisung looked at him through gentle eyes, “You said yourself that us talking like this was beautiful. You can talk about anything you need to.”

“Yeah, Seungmin,” Felix nudged Seungmin playfully in the shoulder, “You can tell us anything you want.”

“Like you can say anything,” Seungmin shoved Felix back, cackling as Felix flopped dramatically onto the pile of hoodies behind him, Jisung’s limbs tangling haphazardly with his as he was also thrown backwards, “You haven’t talked to us either.”

“But I also wasn’t the one who said this was nice,” Felix pointed out as he sat up, smiling at the tongue Seungmin stuck out at him, “Come on, you’re the current maknae among us, tell us how you’re feeling.”

“By like a week!” Seungmin screeched, pouting as they all laughed, “Seriously? Literally two of you are days older than me! I do not count as a maknae.”

“But you’re cute enough to be one,” Hyunjin squealed, pinching Seungmin’s cheek as Seungmin cursed and batted him away, “Seriously Seungmin, don’t hold back on us. We’re all here for you.”

The atmosphere dropped, Seungmin sighing heavily before taking a couple of seconds to contemplate his next words, his hand unconsciously finding its way into Hyunjin’s hair.

“I know you guys are,” Seungmin said, “And I’m grateful, I really am, but I don’t like talking about my feelings.”

“No one likes talking about their feelings,” Jisung pointed out, “But even if you don’t realise it, talking really does help. It means we’ll be able to understand you and help you and you won’t have to keep everything to yourself anymore.”

“Yeah, I know,” Seungmin huffed, clearly unable to deny the words, “Doesn’t make it easy though.”

Felix merely hummed in agreement, leaning himself against Seungmin to offer quiet encouragement as they all fell into another silence. Their fingers continued to trace over each other, bodies slowly melding into one another as they relaxed, Seungmin’s brain working a mile-a-minute. He couldn’t deny that he was comfortable here, lying in a strange mess of hoodies, towels and cushions with some of the people he trusted most in the world. But that didn’t mean it wasn’t hard, opening up to people and showing a side of himself that was completely vulnerable.

It was in that moment that Seungmin’s phone finally decided to die, the light fading out to complete darkness. The rain continued to pour outside, Felix clumsily reaching for another phone before a quiet voice stopped him.

“I’m scared the group would be fine without me.”

Seungmin’s confession halted them all, their chests stuttering and lungs constricting as they processed the terrifying words.

“I don’t have Felix’s deep voice, I don’t have Hyunjin’s godly visuals, I don’t have Jisung’s wild sense of humour, I don’t have Jeongin’s cute maknae charm, and I don’t have Chan-hyung’s hilarious Aussie accent. I don’t have anything that really makes me special,” Seungmin continued to speak, his voice shaking as it was swallowed by the darkness, “I’m scared that I could disappear from the group one day and nothing would change. You’d still be successful without me, because there’s nothing I really offer to you anyway.”

His timid words were followed by silence, broken only by the sound of their breathing as a heavy weight settled over them all. They let Seungmin’s admission clatter about in their heads for a few moments before Hyunjin finally cleared his throat, one of his hands finding its way to squeeze Seungmin’s leg in the darkness.

“Kim Seungmin,” he fought to keep his voice steady, “I don’t care how many times I have to say this, I’ll scream it from the roof of this building if you need me to, absolutely none of that is true.”

“But-“ Seungmin tried to protest but was immediately cut off by three firm voices, and a small finger that Felix tried to use to press against his lips but ended up hitting his cheek instead.

“No buts,” Jisung said sternly, “Seungmin, you offer so much to this group. You may not have Felix’s demon voice or Jeongin’s demon cuteness or any of the other stuff you mentioned, but that’s okay. Because instead you have Seungmin’s cutthroat sense of humour, you have Seungmin’s clear, gorgeous, heavenly voice, you have Seungmin’s puppylike smile that none of us could be without.”

“You bring so much to this group, Seungmin,” Felix carried on, speaking into Seungmin’s shoulder, “I can’t even explain how beautiful your singing voice is. Our vocal line wouldn’t be the same without you. Heck, neither would our rap line or our dance line. Your talent shows in so many ways, literally in everything you do. We wouldn’t get anywhere without it.”

“And Stays notice it too,” Hyunjin smiled softly, his face couldn’t be seen in the dark but they still all knew that the smile would be there, “You’re the resident photographer of the group, always posting pictures of yourself and all of us to make them happy. They need you just as much as we do.”

“So, don’t go thinking we would be fine without you,” Jisung said lightly, “Because we wouldn’t. You complete the ’00 line.”

Small sniffles filled the air as Jisung finished, Felix feeling his face pulling into a delicate smile as Seungmin leaned further into him. He grasped onto Felix’s shoulder and squeezed, rubbing circles into his t-shirt.

“Do you really mean it?” Seungmin said quietly, “Do you really need me that much?”

“We really do, Minnie,” Hyunjin answered, “We need you just as much as we need anyone else in the group. We’re nine or none, remember? We wouldn’t be the same without you.”

If Seungmin and Felix weren’t draped all over each other, Seungmin probably would have missed Felix’s slight flinch at ‘nine or none’. But as it was, even through the feeling of a weight being tugged off his chest, Seungmin still noticed.

“Thanks, Hyunjin,” Seungmin tried to find a way to bring it up as he responded, “It’s just that after the survival show when JYP told me I blended into the background of the group, I’ve always worried about it.”

Felix flinched even harder at ‘survival show’ and Seungmin’s suspicions were confirmed, his previously light heart slowly getting heavier.

“Well, you know better than to listen to that,” Jisung carried on obliviously, “You were important then and you’re important now. Don’t ever be afraid to come to us about this, we’ll happily sit here for hours and tell you how important you are.”

“Yeah,” Hyunjin giggled and Felix nodded, Seungmin smiling despite himself.

“Thanks guys,” Seungmin’s hand moved from Felix’s shoulder down to his knee, squeezing gently, “It’s weird, my fear started as a result of the survival show and I bet yours did too, didn’t it Lix?”

Felix flinched fully this time, so hard he managed to jostle both Hyunjin and Jisung as he whipped round to face Seungmin. It was still dark in the room, but Seungmin could just about make out the outline of Felix’s face… and the extreme worry painted across it.

“It’s nothing,” Felix quickly shook his head as he settled back down, desperately tryng to dismiss the whole thing and ignore Hyunjin and Jisung’s questioning glances. He should have known Seungmin wouldn’t let go of it that easily.

“It’s not nothing,” Seungmin said, “I felt you tense when Hyunjin said ‘nine or none’. You were reminded of when that phrase originated, weren’t you? During the eliminations?”

Felix couldn’t stop the laboured sigh from leaving his lips, memories replaying through his mind as he dropped his head, feeling both Hyunjin and Jisung shifting towards him.

“Lix?” he could practically hear the frown in Hyunjin’s voice, “Do you still worry about the fact you were eliminated?”

It took a couple of seconds for Felix to answer, the words getting tangled with the thoughts in his head as he dragged in a deep breath through his nose, “It’s ironic,” he said, “Jisung’s fear is loud noises. Whilst my fear is not being able to hear _any noises_, or not being able to understand any of the noises around me.”

Confusion filled the air as Felix spoke, Jisung feeling his face scrunch with questions, “What do you mean?”

“I… I was eliminated because I literally found it difficult to do the most important, basic thing,” Felix’s explained, voice strained, “I could barely communicate with anyone. I couldn’t even speak the language I was supposed to be debuting in. It was terrifying, and I was basically removed from the group for it.”

“But you’re so much better at Korean now,” Hyunjin said confusedly, “It was wrong of them to make you learn it so fast back then, but you’ve learnt so much more now. You don’t need to worry about it anymore.”

“Of course, I have to worry about it,” Felix shook his head, Seungmin feeling the movement and squeezing even harder at his knee, “My broken Korean nearly cost me everything. It was nearly the reason that I couldn’t be in this group. There was so much at stake, so much I nearly lost because of it. I have to worry about it now because I know just how bad it can be if I’m not good at it.”

“Oh Lix,” Jisung looked up at Felix from his lap, eyes glistening as he was thrown back to the time Felix could barely talk to him, when Felix would speak with terror in his eyes and teeth biting at his lips and the staff breathing down his neck, huffing at every stuttered mistake, “This isn’t the survival show anymore, and everyone is so much more understanding about it now. There’s never going to be a chance for you to get taken away from us like that again, I promise.”

“And it’s not like they’d want to take you away,” Hyunjin said softly, reaching blindly for Felix’s face to stroke his cheek, “You’ve improved so much. You’re having a fast, complicated, fluent conversation with us right now, like you do everyday with barely any mistakes. It’s incredible how far you’ve come.”

A warm feeling bloomed in Felix’s chest at the words, making him unable to deny how good it felt to have opened up about it, “Thanks Hyunjin. I do try to be more confident about it, I promise. It’s just I can so vividly remember when I barely knew it, when you’d all be having a conversation and how scared I’d be with you all talking and me not being able to understand it. When an interviewer would ask a question I didn’t understand and I’d worry it was directed at me. It’s not like that anymore, but there’s still times you’ll say a word I don’t understand or speak a little too fast for me to pick up, and I’ll be too scared to ask what you mean.”

“Well, don’t ever feel like that again,” Seungmin said in English, making Felix smile, “I’m always here to translate for you. Just like you do for me.”

“So am I,” Jisung said, also in English, “You can always come to us about it. We’re never embarrassed about your Korean, we’re actually honoured that you’ve worked so hard to speak it, and proud of how well you do.”

“Thanks guys,” Felix said softly, “You were right about this, you know, about speaking about your fears. It does feel nice.”

“Told you,” there was a smile in Jisung’s voice, a smile that bloomed into mischief when he suddenly jostled them all by shooting up, scrambling around for a phone, “I have an idea!”

“Sungie… what?” Felix dodged one of Jisung’s flying limbs, “Stop flailing! My phone’s right here, what are you doing?”

“Ah, thanks!” Jisung chirped, throwing the light on and shoving it their way, causing them all to groan as it hit their faces, “We should make a deal!”

“A deal?” Hyunjin grumbled as he also sat up, rubbing at his eyes.

“Yes, a deal!” Jisung was practically bouncing where he sat, “Listen! We should agree that whenever Hyunjin feels alone, and whenever I get scared of loud noises, and whenever Seungmin gets worried about his place in the group, and whenever Lix struggles with his Korean, we should always go to each other!”

“Jisung,” Seungmin couldn’t stop the amused smile playing at his lips, “I thought we’d already agreed to do that from now on. That’s what this whole talk was all about.”

“No, you don’t get it!” Jisung whined, “We should do it like this! We should find a quiet spot, make it comfortable, turn off all the lights and _just talk_.”

Jisung’s voice got more insistent, his hands reaching to grab all of theirs as he spoke, “Come on guys! You said yourself that this was therapeutic. This could be so good for us.”

“Jisung that’s…” Hyunjin paused to look down, letting the idea roll over his head, “That’s… genius. We really should try to recreate this. It has been really nice.”

“Well, I’m not exactly up for getting locked in a building again,” Seungmin grinned, “But we can definitely leave that part out and try the rest. Good idea, Sungie.”

“Thanks!” Jisung beamed, letting his eyes roll cheekily over to the last member of the group, “Liiiiiiiiiiix?”

“You know I can never say no to your crazy ideas,” Felix couldn’t hold back a laugh as he ruffled Jisung’s hair, “The hyungs are going to think we’re crazy, but I’m in!”

“The hyungs already think we’re crazy,” Hyunjin said, waving a hand dismissively, “This is nothing compared to what they’ve seen before. We’ll be fine!”

“Yay!” Jisung squealed, jumping on his knees a couple of times before throwing his arms around everyone and pulling them close, “Thanks guys!”

They all laughed as they looped their arms around each other, feeling warmth encase them as they hugged, collapsing onto the bed they’d made together.

And if they stayed up talking all night, barely even realising when morning rolled around and the building unlocked and Chan came rushing in looking for them, then they were only happier for it.

Because no one understood them better than they understood each other.

They were the ’00 line, a close-knit group of friends who finally knew what it was like to open up to one another.

**Author's Note:**

> And that's the end! Thank you so, so, so much for making it this far!!
> 
> I love to read comments so feel free to leave one!! also it's 2am when I'm proofreading this, so please tell me about any mistakes
> 
> Twitter: @hotelfelixxie - my dms are open if you ever want to say hi xx
> 
> Remember to stay safe and healthy, I tried to use this fic to emphasise how important talking is. I know it sucks, but if you're ever scared or stressed or worried or having a hard time, then it really does help to go to someone about it. Letting other people help you carry your weight is so much easier than carrying it alone, and it doesn't make you selfish either. We all need help sometimes and that's okay. We can all lean on each other like the '00 line do in this fic.
> 
> And on that note, please have a beautiful day and take care <3


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